Did OA kill my bees?

[nosmoking]

Just checked both hives. Both DEAD!!. Done OA on February 2nd and everything was fine. First chance I have had to check them was today. Plenty of stores and one still in a cluster. One thing's for sure, I will NOT be using OA ever again!! Fact.

 

[dickbowyer]

I have used OA on a total of 22 colonies over the last 3 year without loss like many in my association so whilst blaming the OA treatment, cause maybe elsewhere.

 

[BKF Admin]

I stopped using it two years ago.

With a large cluster and a new queen I seemed to get away with it,but lost many hives with smaller clusters and an old queen.

 

[Teemore]

Sorry to hear about the losses. I wouldn't be too swift to blame the oxalic for the colonies dying out. How big were these colonies and was there much sign of soiling on the frames or the front of the hives? Nosema/dysentry 'could' be a contributory factor.
I am hearing about colony losses where the beekeepers suspect that the cold weather prevented the bees from foraging for water to dilute stores and this contributed to them dying out, surrounded by stores (albeit crystallised stores...) These were small colonies and that can be a problem in itself. A beekeeping friend in Tullamore tells me that his association memebers are finding colonies to be much smaller than they would normally expect.

 

[Graham40]

How was it applied?

 

[Skyhook]

Since I started I have taken 8 hives into a winter, they've all had OA treatment, and I haven't lost one yet- and Many other people use it very succesfully..

I would suggest that OA is unlikely to be the cause, unless the hives were infected with Nosema. I believe the conjunction of the two can be fatal; but then if the queen was infected it would have only speeded the inevitable.

 

[RoofTops]

Done OA on February 2nd

Very sad about the loss of the colonies but if you don't even know when to do the OA treatment (you were about a month too late) then the finger of suspicion probably points at your general beekeeping skills as the most likely explanation for the colony losses. And in case you say the weather at the time was not right to do it at the normal time I know a beefarmer with several thousand colonies who usually has to dig them out of the snow to apply the OA. It is never too cold as the treatment takes seconds done properly.

The above is a bit blunt but it is still disheartening after so much has been written on this Forum about best practice for applying OA that the message has not yet been learned by beekeepers* and to hear the same old moans about OA having killed their bees. It won't if you do it correctly.

Oh Dear, I'm getting old and grumpy. Must need a holiday somewhere warm....

*Leaving aside those who choose not to use OA for their own reasons.

 

[drstitson]

feb 2 is very late to be OA'ing - likely to be at least some brood present (except maybe in a colony that will die shortly afterwards!!!!).

 

[For want of a better word]

Oh Dear, I'm getting old and grumpy. Must need a holiday somewhere warm....

Mee too
but then I am an OA Vaporisor Advocate

 

[Finman]

.
It is better to analyze what has happened in the hive.

It is sure, that allways before dead, hives are alive.
The longer the winter, the worse it is for bees.

- How big is the dead cluster, how many frames gaps or how many litres
- where are dead bees: in gaps, on bottom, gone
- dead brood in combs

- dead bees small and dry
- dead bees swollen
- how much mites on floor or in combs when you shake them

- how much extra room /occupied frames. How they were in autumn?



If cluster is small, it must work quite much that it keeps it heat.
So it is just too hard to live. They get perhaps mere syrup on their neck and it is enough.

 

[Finman]

.
Wintered bees are weak.

Sometimes I have taken an extra queen from hive after winter and I put it into cage with 10 workers. It is strange that in every case workers have died in 2-3 days. In summer they stand about one week in the cage.

 

[Dishmop]

It is sure, that allways before dead, hives are alive.

 

[nosmoking]

Well, I had been watching on here when keepers were doing OA and I thought I got it right judging by what others were doing. Obviously not!

I followed the instructions to the letter. Trickled 5ml over each seam. Roof was off each hive for about 60 seconds or, maybe a minute!
What more can I say?

Thanks for all your comments and ‘grumps’, lol.

Time to re-group and thanks to forum member ‘Mike a’ for your offer. There’s some great people on here

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

.
It is sure, that allways before dead, hives are alive.

Hmm,could be an early contender for quote of the year!

 

[Skyhook]

Very sad about the loss of the colonies but if you don't even know when to do the OA treatment (you were about a month too late)

Sorry Rooftops, I'm going to disagree. I did mine around the end of Jan, and I seem to recall trom discussions at the time that I was not the only one. Basically, autumn ended some time after Christmas around here, and the first decent cold spell to induce a break in laying was mid-late Jan. And as I've said, didn't do mine any harm!

I still think the problem lies elsewhere, be it Nosema, colony size or something else.

 

[MrPea]

.
It is sure, that allways before dead, hives are alive.

...best...quote...ever!

I'm fairly sure my hive died last year because of the OA...whether it was because the cluster was quite small or any other factor, they looked strongish when I put it on, and a week later they were all gone. No sign of disease, and they definitely didn't starve (I pulled out 5 full 14x12 frames of honey).

 

[Finman]

.
It is possible that bees have got too much syrup.
I have given to my bees douple dosage and bees lost their cluster control.

If the cluster is smaller than it seems and it gets too much syrup, I believe that dead out is possible.

Last spring I gove too much syrup and there was extra droplets over combs.
I put quite much dry sawdust into the hive that it soaked the syrup away. It took couple of days that colony started to act normally.

.

 

[Hivemaker.]

I stopped using it two years ago.

I stopped using it in the winter over five years ago, best move i ever made, never lost many colonies before i used it, or since i stopped using it.

http://www.nand.be/ambrosius/nieuws/oxaalzuurtest.pdf

 

[Finman]

.
Come on..........

Oxalic trickling has been used so long time, 10-15y, that it is not a problem.
No one will become hero if he says that he stopped.


I think that dead outs happen because treatments are not as succesfull as expected and finally varroa kills the hives. That is more normal than that treament kills hives.


One 1000 hive owner said that he did not lost a single hive last winter. - Sure sure, sure I believe that.

 

[Chrisfnvs]

I imagine we will have a lot more coming on here saying they have lost their colonies or Queens when they start using MAQ`S which by all accounts will be very popular when it becomes available, i think the basic requirement before treatment is a strong healthy colony , and to stick to the recommended method of treatment etc.